Lining Up: Vancouver, Chicago, and More – October 9

Stop what you’re doing right now. Stop Scrolling. Stop sipping your coffee. Go follow me on Twitter @BrennanDeSouza for the latest line changes and injury updates. Don’t you want to be the first to know when WhatsHisName McNobody gets promoted to the top line? Don’t you want to find a replacement for Band-Aid Boy the second it’s announced he’s going to miss the next month with an injury? Follow me now, thank me later.

In this week’s installment, we take a look at a few lines that have been particularly successful in this very young season. Using Dobber’s Line Production Tool, I compiled a list of the highest scoring line for each team at even strength. You’ll notice Arizona and Tampa Bay are missing because they haven’t yet scored a goal at strength. Also, keep in mind certain teams have played more games than others. Here’s the list…

It’s early in the season, so we don’t quite have a large enough sample size to start dissecting advanced statistics. However, I will let you know that Chicago’s top line has been outshooting their opponents, sporting a CF% of 54.76. While this trio has generated the most points at even strength so far, it’s not like they’re dominating their opposition. They’ve created just two more scoring chances than they have allowed (22 to 20), and have actually allowed more high-danger scoring chances than they’ve produced (9 to 7).

Jonathan Toews has been on fire to start the season. With six points in his first three games, Toews was recognized as the NHL’s second star of the week. Coming off a career-worst 52-point season, Toews worked extremely hard this offseason to become a faster skater. He’s obviously not going to hit the 164 points he’s currently on pace for, but I’m beginning to believe a 65-point season is in the cards for Captain Serious.

In an impressive rookie season, Alex DeBrincat tallied 52 points, 28 of which were goals. Keep in mind that DeBrincat put up those impressive numbers while everything was going wrong for Chicago last season. Now that Toews appears to be on track for a bounce-back season, I’m expecting a 30-goal/60-point season from DeBrincat, with potential for more. Although the season is extremely young, DeBrincat is putting himself in a position to succeed by continuously getting the puck on net (nine shots in three games). With a year of experience under his belt, the 20-year-old Blackhawks’ forward is soaring to new heights.

The talent of Toews and DeBrincat has been well documented, so we’re probably more inclined to trust them in fantasy leagues than a newcomer like Dominik Kahun. The 23-year-old is listed as a smart forward with tremendous skating abilities. In all honesty, I don’t see any legitimate candidates outside of Chicago’s top-six that can take Kahun’s spot on the first line. While Kahun may not be someone you keep on your team for the entire season, I think he can be extremely valuable for short stretches. In other words, he’s someone you can add when Chicago has a favourable schedule in the upcoming week.

It goes against every fiber of my being to speak about Loui Eriksson as an asset in fantasy hockey (because of injuries more than anything else), but he has been producing alongside some young talent. While the points have been there, this trio probably isn’t going to maintain the 65.38 CF% they’re currently sporting. This line has seen about a third of the ice-time that the aforementioned Toews-line saw, so the sample size is a lot smaller. It’s encouraging to see that their production has come while out chancing the opposition, but I don’t think they have the wheels to keep it up all season.

Elias Pettersson is an excellent hockey player who is probably valuable in most fantasy leagues. He tallied five points in his first two NHL games, showing insane amounts of talent in the process. With that being said, some of us might need to temper our expectations a little considering both of his games were played against the Calgary Flames. So, while the fifth overall pick from the 2017 draft is certainly a frontrunner for the Calder, we might want to set the bar at 60 points instead of the 205 he’s currently on pace for.

Nikolay Goldobin was selected 27th overall in the 2014 draft, and has tallied 22 points in 63 games between the Sharks and Canucks. Up until this point, he hasn’t really done anything impressive at the NHL-level, but he also hasn’t played with a player like Elias Pettersson before. In the past, he was criticized for his play away from the puck. But on a young Canucks team, Goldobin’s defensive weaknesses can be set aside temporarily as his offensive skills shine beside Pettersson. Goldobin might be someone you add and drop during the season, but the ten minutes of ice-time he’s seeing certainly isn’t enough for you to own him long-term. A 30 to 40-point season seems realistic, with potential for more as he continues to develop in the coming years.

Loui Eriksson is not the player he once was, and a large part of that is due to the injuries he’s battled in the last couple of seasons. The 33-year-old isn’t seeing enough ice-time (9:42) to hold any sort of value over the course of the season, but he may have flashes of production if he continues to play with Pettersson. It’s concerning that through two games in which he has three points, he still hasn’t registered a shot. Again, it’s a small sample size, but he’s probably not going to drive very much offense by himself. While playing with Petterrson, he has limited value. Away from Pettersson, his value falls off a cliff.